Trusting Touch
by mistressofburden
Summary: One Shot. After seeing his transformation from human to hanyou Kagome becomes even more fascinated with Inuyasha's ears. Inspired by a fan art


.: Dedicated to Kristin :.

She was staring at him. He didn't have to turn and look at her to know that.

The group was walking in a tense silence. Usually they only became like this when there was a threat ahead of them; but this time it was something completely different. And, it was probably because of what happened the night before.

Their group had been sitting around Kaede's, relaxing, and enjoying the break that they received out of duty to protect Inuyasha on his human night. The problem began when Kagome tried to leave, claiming she need to leave just for a few hours so that she could go get a text book to study from.

"_Oh come on, Inuyasha!" Kagome cried in frustration. "I'll be back within the hour."_

_"Keh, I said no wench." Inuyasha told her. "If I can't leave 'the safety of the hut', then you sure as hell can't go traipsing to the well unprotected."_

_"I'll gladly accompany Kagome to the…"_

_"Can it monk." The Hanyou snapped at Miroku._

_"You're being ridiculess, Miroku offered to walk me there, wait for me, and then walk me back. These high school exams are so much harder then the ones I used to take." Kagome said, trying to plead with him._

_"Then why didn't you bring the book back with you?" Inuyasha pointed out._

_"Because, we usually go to my time for your human night." Kagome reminded him. "And since we didn't get back earlier, and you wanted to get to Kaede's right away, then it was impossible for me to go get it!"_

_"No." Inuyasha said._

_"Inuyasha,"_

_She could see him shrink back a bit. He knew that tone; it usually ended with him face first picking splinters out of his face for a week. Fortunately she wouldn't "sit" him while he was human. However, him shrinking away to the other side of the hut gave her the opportunity to jump to her feet and dash out the door._

_"Oi!" She heard him behind her. "Kagome, get back here!"_

_She ran to the well, hopped over the lip and was gone by the time Inuyasha got half way to the well. It wasn't that he was slow, it's just that Sango made him stop and take her sword with him, since Tetsusaiga wouldn't transform for him. Grumbling he sat down by the well, wrapping his arms around the sword and waited, as he always did, for her to come back._

_True to her word, Kagome was back within an hour. Her house had been empty, her family going to some school event for Souta, so she had simply snatched up her book and then left again. She cried out in surprise when a hand grabbed her wrist to help her over the edge of the well. She had a feeling that someone would wait for her; it just shocked her that she saw red fire rat clothes instead of black priest clothes._

_"What are you doing here?" She asked, as they walked back to Kaede's._

_"Someone had to come wait for you." He said casually._

_"Yeah, but Miroku could have done it, you should have stayed at Kaede's."_

_"Keh," Inuyasha said, his cheeks pinking slightly in the torch light of the path they followed. "To quote you, 'we're twenty feet from the village, what could possibly happen'?"_

_A deafening roar was their answer. Kagome gasped and grabbed his arm, instinctually knowing he'd protect her, problem was he wasn't at full strength. A large wolf Youkai, in its true form, came crashing out of the trees, and Kagome caught the unmistakeable shimmer of three Shikon Shards in its jaw._

_"What the hell?" Inuyasha said from beside her. "That's one of Kouga's wolves."_

_Kagome's eyes widened and she turned to look at the animal that was currently snarling at them. It was true, it was one of Kouga's pack members, and she knew the markings. She was surprised that it was so small, sure he towered over their heads, but compared to what Sesshomaru had been like, this was nothing. Still, they were in a lot of trouble since Inuyasha was human._

_"What should we do?" Kagome asked softly. "We can't run away, he'll just chase us."_

_"Keh, I can take him."_

Needless to say, Inuyasha rushed to fight the Youkai, completely disregarding the fact that he was human and vulnerable. Kagome had been pretty impressed that he fought as well as he did with Sango's sword. In fact, had the situation not been so serious, she would have giggled when he tried to use the Kaze no Kizu with the human sword.

Unfortunately, the wolf managed to get a hold of Inuyasha in between his jaws, clamping down on his now fragile human body. Kirara must have heard Kagome's scream because Hiraikotsu was soon flying through the air, cutting through the Youkai, and the two tailed cat caught Inuyasha as he fell. Sango had told them that she was immediately taking Inuyasha to Kaede. Miroku ended up having to retrieve the shards and help Kagome back to the hut. While she wasn't hurt, the sight of seeing Inuyasha in that position had made her feel faint.

When they arrived, Kaede was already treating Inuyasha's wounds and Shippo had launched himself at Kagome, seeking comfort from his adoptive mother. Once Kaede had stopped the bleeding as best she could and dressed his wounds, she allowed Kagome to approach his futon. Her companions turned away respectfully as Kagome sat down at his head and pulled it into her lap.

It was nothing new to them. Inuyasha was quite affectionate with Kagome on his human nights, often seeking her out to comfort him. This position was nothing new to them. He'd usually nap with his head resting on her thigh while she studied. The others would take rounds scanning the surrounding area, making sure that everyone was safe.

She stayed awake all night, staring down at him, petting his hair soothingly. When the sun rose she watched his transformation with curiosity. Usually they were blinded by an ethereal light when he transformed back, or he'd disappear before the sun came up. She watched in fascination as his hair bled silver into black, starting at the roots. He seemed to stay a human with silver hair for much longer then she was used to seeing, especially since the transformation seemed to be so quick. His nails lengthened to claws, she could see a fang peeking out of his lips, and then the most fascinating thing happened.

She watched as his ears first transformed shape. They grew a point, reminding her of elves and fairies ears. Then they became a little wider and she could see the muscles forming in them. Eventually they began to crawl up the side of his face, to finally peak out, silver fur growing as they moved. When they finally appeared on top of his head, they rotated a few times, like someone rotates and stretches their muscles first thing in the morning.

She sighed with relief when midnight blue eyes opened and lightened to the familiar gold. She head Kaede chuckle as Inuyasha shot up and moved across the room, staring at her. Kagome stared back at him; his look reminded her of the old "deer caught in the headlights" look.

"Are you okay now?" Kagome asked softly.

Inuyasha looked down his body and blushed. He had on only a light pair of Hakama, and bindings around his wounds. Using his claw he carefully cut off one of the bindings to reveal smooth, healed skin. Kagome nodded and handed him his fire rat clothes, which had once again cleaned and repaired itself over night.

She stood and left so that he could change. "It would appear your wounds have healed." Miroku said as he entered. "Kagome was quite worried about you last night, I don't think she slept much."

Before Inuyasha could answer Kagome re-entered the hut and he caught Kouga's scent on her. "Where's the wolf?" Inuyasha demanded.

Kagome stared at him, a curious expression on her face. He self consciously touched the spot that his human ears usually say, since that was where she kept staring at him. "Kouga came looking for his comrade. He understands we had to cut him down, but he would like us to go to the den and pray for his soul."

"Since when does Kouga care about that kind of thing?" Inuyasha asked suspiciously.

Kagome shrugged. "I'm only repeating what I was told."

So now, here they were, on their way to the wolf den and Kagome kept staring at him. It was getting close to sundown, and he knew they should break for camp, but he hoped they might get a few more miles in before they had to stop. He peeked at Kagome out of the corner of his eye and saw that she was still staring at the side of his face.

"What the hell is your problem!" He finally shouted, halting his steps.

Kagome jerked her eyes away, her face turning a light pink. "Sorry." She muttered softly.

"Well, why do you keep staring at me?" Inuyasha demanded. "What, you saw my transformation, so let's all stare at the freak!"

Sango and Miroku glanced at each other as Inuyasha stormed off. Kagome sighed and slid her backpack off her shoulder. "Can you guys set up camp?" They nodded and watched as Kagome followed Inuyasha into the trees.

It took her twice as long to find him since she got her skirt caught in a branch. It took her several minutes to untangle it, and eventually ended up with a small tear in the fabric. She muttered a curse before she resumed her trek. She was surprised to hear the crackle of a fire and caught the scent of smoke.

She found him sitting near a small creek with a fire going. He was staring reflectively at the flame. She sighed and started to turn back, deciding that she might as well leave him alone.

"Are you going to tell me why you keep staring at me?" His voice sounded, making her jump in surprise.

Kagome moved closer and sat down beside him. "Are you going to tell me why you think I'm looking at you like you're a freak?"

"Well ever since you saw my full transformation on the night of the new moon, you've been staring at me." Inuyasha told her, not looking in her direction. "It's just, people used to always stare at me, then whisper about me, call me a freak, then attack me. I guess a person staring at me makes me uneasy."

Kagome's eyes widened in shock. Sure over the years that they had been travelling together he had opened up a lot, but she usually had to coax it out of him a lot more. Then again, he tended to be a little more open and affectionate when he knew they were alone. That meant that Miroku wasn't spying on them, she hid her grin at the thought that Sango had probably hog tied him to keep him at camp.

"So?" Inuyasha said, interrupting her thoughts. "Are you going to tell me why you were staring?"

Kagome's face flushed, "Do you promise not to laugh at me?"

Inuyasha gave her a questioning look. "I promise."

"The side of your head, for some reason it's completely fascinating me." Kagome said, her face flushing more crimson. "It was so cool to watch your ears change and shift and yet the skin didn't change at all."

Inuyasha leaned away from her slightly. "Is that a good thing?"

Kagome shrugged. "I don't know…maybe I have some weird side of face fetish or something."

Inuyasha quirked an eyebrow at her, not understanding what she was talking about. Kagome sighed and shook her head, her way of telling him to never mind. She stood up, signalling that she felt awkward with the conversation. She didn't say anything, instead she opted to head back to camp.

Inuyasha jumped to his feet, "Wait!"

Kagome stopped and looked back at him. "What?"

"Would you," Inuyasha blushed and looked down at his feet. "Would you, touch the skin there?"

Kagome's brow furrowed, it had to be the strangest request he ever made of her, and then it dawned on her. He was asking her to check and see if there was something wrong with him. She gave him a shy smile and stepped forward. Inuyasha was standing, his body completely tense, breathing heavily.

"It's okay," She told him. "Trust me."

She could see his body loosen slightly and she stepped up to him. He circled his arms around her to give her extra balance. She carefully moved her hands to cup his face, letting him get used to her being so close to him in an intimate way. Once his stance was completely relaxed, she slid her hands around to the side of his head, where his human ears would be.

Inuyasha let out a shuddering breath as her fingers brushed against the sensitive skin. A look of amazement passed over Kagome's face and a small smile graced her lips. She was surprised at how silky and soft the skin there was. It was a direct contradiction of the man in front of her.

The rest of Inuyasha's skin was tanned and rough, but this was pale and smooth. She couldn't keep her thumbs from stroking the skin. She smiled as his eyes drifted closed and he unconsciously moved closer to her. Kagome bit her lower lip as her hands drifted from silky skin into silky hair. She stared at him tenderly and played with the strands of his hair.

She pulled him a little closer, and with her hands keeping his hair from that patch of skin, she leaned in and gently pressed her lips to the skin. She allowed her lips to linger on the sensitive skin as his arms tightened around her. She pulled back and pressed her forehead against his, relishing the moment of being in his arms.

"Inuyasha, know now, that I will never, ever find any part of you to be freakish or unnatural." Inuyasha opened his eyes and smiled down at her, hugging her closer to his body. "So now that that's settled, put out the fire and let's go see how Sango managed to keep Miroku from coming and interrupting."

Inuyasha grinned and kicked some dirt onto the small fire, smothering the flames. "I'll bet you three nights in your era that she's knocked him out with the Hiraikotsu."

Kagome laughed and grabbed his hand. "You're on, dog-boy."

* * *

**AN: Have you ever seen a picture and it just totally inspires something in you? That's where this came from. I know I use her pictures a lot to convey scenes and what not, but Kristin drew a new picture and the minute I saw it, this idea popped in my head.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha or the characters of** **Rumiko Takahashi. I do own the plot of this story along with any original characters that may make an appearance.**


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